Ventilated shoe



Sept. 15, 1953 F. H. TABER ETAL VENTILATED SHOE 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 5, 1952 ya O/Lmo oo 000000?,V 0000000 Sept. 15, 1953 Filed Jan. 5, 1952 F. H. TABER ET AL VENTILATED SHOE :s sheets-.shed 2 Hai/@Zd .5T 520m @a2/ugs.

Sept. 15, 1953 F. H. TABER ET AL 2,651,854

l VENTILATED SHOE Filed Jan. 5, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Sept. 15, 1953 ears-Nm" ofFFIfcE VENTILATED sHoE FredericH- Taber, New Bedford, and Harold S. Swain; j lrookton, Moss,

Application January-i5; 1952; Serial1-Nos26509f 5C1ai11i.S-j (Cl. 36e-311' This invention pertainsto foowzear; and more?, especially7 to a shoe of theventilatedtypeaz Euer since the dawn vof his t ory .aniiooal hidesaandh. leatherf have beenv used predominantly in tlierV manufacture,- of-footwear.; To a lesse1 f i degreev` 5 woven fabrics haven been.- employed, Dolubtless;A the choice of` these. materials Wasi indicatedv byf their availability @mdby the-fact thattheyarei exible and, conformable, to the root., a Ieofwever,y the `great-wear resistance.r of leather, as icompared l@ with woven 'textilesyhas made it preeminent in this field. Orrthey yother .handf leatheraisirregufA lar-inthiclmess andvshap:e;. Variable .injitszregf sistance to stretch, kand injuriouslyaffected by moisture; inherent characteristics, which make 15 it difficultr and 4wasteful-to. useV in shoerriaking,V especially in massfproduction.-

The .relativelyrecent developments in themakg ing of sheetvmaterialsfor example,rubbersli'eeb, ing, rubberized .textileL fabric. or textiles coated 30 and/lor. impregnatedl with ipyroxylin,A or other more: modern. synthetics.lA would seem `to vproviciefthe shoefindustry, with a i V`perfect substitute, for leather,- devoid of the...undesirablecharacftiistiesvof the. latter, but ,the.. attempted`use of thesg25 new: materials in `making shoes, ledfjo rthe disoovrA s eryotaypropelliI 0f leathery and cloth (p11( Jliialolyy not-*previously recognized A,or-at least notappref ciated tas a characteristic essential tojthe usej of a ,material or.shoerr1 aking) `that is toA say, 30 in th,e following more detaileddescription and byA Areference, to the: accompanying drawings] abilityatobreathe, that is, its capabi1ty'ofpermitting.; the slow., passage, 0f moisture or ain Earlyattempts` in the use. of, rubber and other moisturerimpervious materials quicklyl proved toallo w the, heat and moisture ottheiootto, escapethe shoe isnotlonly uncomfortable but maybe injurious to thewearers foot. V

The useof Aother sheet materalazfor example,

2 2;y upper material (including the outer ply and the linings plyj, ir .the latterfvisused), and, in-such an gripper, to arrangetheperforationsginy the outerI ply.tolfregisterawith ,those-inthe lining.4 While an iu-pperiwhoselmajor portion lis thuSperOrated,r

and so provides-ample ver1ti1ation may be-aoceptablesfor speoiahusesl fon example, Summer wear i orv`4-v in, sport shoes itsfuse .isavery limited.

A shoe ,havingil an v upper Aof thisfftype/Would not.

foraine@J 'tends to stretch.. and, quickly lose; itsA shape;sucl1 an upper presentsoiiculty in lastingI tottavoidrl tearing; and it ,.c ar if notbe polished byg usual methods i.iwithoutisoilina;the.; Sock and footot the wearer* The present inventipnihas lfor. its principal 0bjecttlie provisionpf ashoewhich externally mayv be .of anyof. the, conventional types ,commonly worn on the streetlbutjwlriclris of aconstructionsuh :as .to make possible 4theemployment 4of sheet yimateriale-Whitt;arev .in liereotly.v impervious to moisture., in the manufacture of. some or all paci-ty tomakeitcomfortable and non-injurious to{the. wearer Othjerandiurther objects and advantages of lthe invention .will' ber pointed'v out erallyjoonyentonal type ibut. inoorporatilrle` theY that. unless the materials .of the shoe is such.v as' 35,l

present invention;

including, thetip.. but. beforeassembly with the other; parts;

Fig. 3, is la, plan v viertentheyamp lining before coatedtextile fabric in lieu vof leather inmany; ifivass erriblyrix/ith4 otherparts;` i

fields of industry has increased enormously, in recent years, but, as most such' materials areimperyious to air or.moisture, the Huse ofgsuchi materials for Shoe, uppers has been hinderedand substantially prevented; in spite of theffaet thai'f`45` such 'materials .are uniform `in thickness, attainable in sheets of ialmost anyV desired extent and are exible, relatively cheapV as compared'with-j leather, very Wear resistant andl of pleasing` appearanoe and thus, inthese paltioularsx4 idealpO foruse as a shoemakingmaterialr In itheattempt toemploy such imperyious ma terialsvin makinafshoe uppers it has heretofore. been` proposed to `prei/'ide lVentile-,tioI iiforfthe out Eigelb.issarfraeinentary.plan View, to larger sca 1 e,-fthai1F ig,3, sliowing4 theinner side of thel vamp lining with,aspaeer memberaccording to. oneembodimentzor the present :invention applied thereto; i

Fig 5 is awieiyigenerally;similartto,Fig. ibut showinef spaoinsgimeans.. oa modified construc-r tion- Fieis az fragmentary, loneitudinat vertical..

section throueitithe forepart. portion. and toe of the shoe. irigaooordanefwtn. the present in-` vention by,t1 1 euseof. multitudinous perforationsrin thesf Fia-7l is; ka 1areev scale. fragmentary section through the vamp lining substantially on the line 'Il-'F or' Fig. 4;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary, transverse, vertical section, to larger scale than Fig, 6, on the plane of the line 8 8 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a preferred form of spacer element;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary, longitudinal section through the vamp substantially on the line Ill-I U of Fig. 2;

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary view of the inside of a vamp according to the present invention, illustrating a slight modification;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary plan View of a vamp lining of a modified construction;

Fig. 13 is a plan view of the upper or outside element of the vamp with parts broken away to show the assembled lining and spacer grid;

Fig. 14 is a side elevation of a tipless shoe of the Blucher type embodying the present invention;

Fig. 15 is a plan view of the vamp of the shoe f Fig. 14, before its assembly with other parts;

Fig. 16 is a view showing the inside of the vamp having assembled therewith a spacer grid in accordance with the present invention; and

Fig. 1'7 is a plan view of the vamp lining.

The invention is herein specifically disclosed as providing ventilation for the vamp or forepart portion of the shoe, as this is the part of the shoe at which the problem of ventilation is most acute.

When herein reference is made to a shoe of generally conventional construction and appearance, it is thereby intended to say that a shoe in which the present inventionis incorporated need not be distinguishable in external appearance from usual shoes designed for all-weather street wear, nor embody major constructional departures from usual shoes of that type.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral I designates a shoe, here shown, for example, as a shoe having an upper` comprising the quarter portion 2, the vamp 3 with its tip portion 4, the outer sole and the heel 6. This shoe, as illustrated in Fig. 6, also comprises the insole 5a and filling material F between the outer sole and the inner sole. In accordance with the present invention the vamp, including its tip portion, may be made of a material which is impervious to moisture, for example, a material having a textile fabric base coated with a flexible substance, normallyvone of the synthetic plastics, which provides the desired finish, appearance and other leather-simulating characteristics. Resins of the vinyl type provide acceptable coatings. However, it is to be understood that the present invention is not primarily concerned with the particular material chosen to form the shoe vamp, but is broadly directed to the provision of effective ventilation of the forepart portion of the shoe, whether the vamp be of a material commonly recognized as impervious or of a material, including usual upper leather, normally considered to be pervious.

As shown in Figs. 2 and 10, the vamp 3 comprises a rear portion and a tip portion, the rear margin of the tip portion 4 overlapping the for- 4 perforations have a further utility as hereinafter described. These perforations 9 may be varied in size and shape and in their spacing one from the next within a wide range of variation and according to the dictates of styling without sacrifice of their functional utility.

In accordance with the present invention, the vamp lining, indicated at I0 in Fig. 3, and which is of the general outline of the vamp with its tip, is provided, at that part which overlies the forepart portion of the foot, with a plurality of longitudinally extending rows I2 of perforations I3. This lining, according to the practice of the present invention, may be of an impervious material of the same general type above referred to, but preferably it is of uncoated textile fabric generally like that commonly used for shoe linings, but desirably 0f a kind which does not ravel or fray readily at a cut edge or perforation. These rows of perforations I3 may be formed in the vamp lining by a suitable punch, and if the vamp lining be cut by means of a die, this die may be provided with the punches for forming the perforations I3 at the same time that the lining is cut. Adjacent rows I2 of perforations are spaced apart transversely of the lining a distance which preferably corresponds to the spacing of adjacent perforations 9 formed in the vamp, as above described, and are so located that when the vamp lining IU is assembled with the vamp preparatory to lasting, one of the perforations 9 of the vamp will be aligned with each one of the rows I2 of perforations I3 in the vamp lining. The perforations I3 may be of the same size as the perforations 9 or larger or smaller, as may be desired, although preferably the perforations I3 should be somewhat larger in diameter than the perforations 9, to take care of slight inaccuracies in assembly in the vamp and vamp lining.

In accordance with one desirable procedurebefore assembly of the vamp and vamp liningthe lining is provided with spacer means which, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 9 in a preferred form, comprises a substantially rectangular grid I4 formed from suitable, flexible sheet material. The material selected for the purpose should be sufficiently dense so that it is substantially incompressiblethat is to say, it does not substantially decrease in thickness in response to the 'pressures to Vwhich it is subjected in shoemaking and during the life of the shoe. A close woven textile material, impregnated with a rubber compound and vof approximately'nlf inch thick, is

. cited merely by way of example as giving good results. This spacer member may be cut from the selected sheet material by means of a die having provision for cutting the slots I5 at the same time that the rectangular piece is cut from thesheet of material. The slots I5 in this spacer grid are spaced apart to correspond with the spacing .of the rows I2 .of perforations I3 in the vamp lining, and when thespacer is assembled (Fig. 4) with the vamp lining (being disposed.

upon vthe upper surface of the latter) the slots I5 areuso arranged as to register with the several rows I2 of .perforations I3. Merely by way of example, and .without limiting intent, slots of approximately 55g inch in width have been found to give excellent results. Preferably, although not necessarily (Fig. 6), a thin strip I9 of flexible material, of the same color as the outer surface of the vamp, is arranged to extend across the vamp lining at that part of the latter which underlies the perforations 9 in the vamp when the parts are assembled, thus concealing the vamp 5 lining-.1which-sis:normally white aor lightfpolor-ed) from ,view..tl'iroughthe perforationsc, 3

The grid 1' or) spacer-I dimay; be secured-ttocthef; vamp lining `'by adhesiva. but itfmay-fbeattachedg tothe-vamp liningfbyaseam- I 8 extending. arpund1- 5-.

the priphery of the grid.. How-ever, if-fdesiredi: the spacer-mayy be xattached'at :its front fand .rear edge oniy tothe-.vaina thus,.-prov-di-ng greater-'s flexibility... The lforwardtop-,seam I;-maybe.1:-used; forthus-y attaching. the grid-abut,- theigrid zshoul not2be--caughtby .the-stitches;of-:themeariseame If adhesive I'I be employed-insteadrofioriinaddie, tionto the sewed seam I8, the adhesivaimayibe applied to-the entire-area ofitheLspacen-so as to stickeachof the. individual bars I S-.bto--thefvamp 5`V lining; -orit: may be applied i only to :.the, forwards,- or rear portions of the-spacer, leaving ,thel indi; vidual bars I I-ffruee` `from-.the varnpdininginter.- mediate -their-V ends. It willi be--olzservedY .(Fiigse complete'dandgthenassembled with thesinsole-4 3 on allast preparatory-tolasting; If-a-toe-box is to beusedQ su/ch a box II -Gigis interposed-- between the-outer member- 4 Land the-.tce-end- 'oftheyvainp lining before the shoe is lasted.I Inn-L accordance with thej presentinvention; thisu toe J box extendsonly asfar rearwardly as the forward-edge ofthe spacer grid-IA;` `This toe--boxmay be adhesively unitedfto-the-tip l1Iv and to the y toe end'of the -varnp lininggin customaryV manner. A doublerjofjusualtype- (not here-shown)` 40- may, if desired; be interposed lbetween the vampn and vamp lining, and because `usual doubler Ina-- teria'ljis of -veryopenweave itis notfneedful to periorate it. A

Thevamp' with its tip I4; Iand also the vamp` 45,

lining1 I0; Inaywbe` madepursuant tothe practice i of the'present invention,vv from impervious sheet material" having the desired ilexibility, strength and surface appearance. The vamp,A 3fcr. ex-

ample, may consist of a synthetic plastic, sheeted 50.--,

with reinforcingbersincorporated-Within the plastic material itself, or, on the other handthe varian 3 ,may .be made, of au strpnamateri@ i ,Such as.. a-,nely iwcventextle fabric Coated orf-meier; ably-.impregnated withthe selecte material.; As illustrated. in :Figi- 10; the avalan-5.3i is shown as consisting ,of asingle. ply of material which, as above noted, may be a synthetic plastic.- incorporating reinforcing means. The.

acci-,elsing c imrervlcug 5a somefof theperforationsdcinftheivamplining toi.:

perforations Stimmen-vamp.:Thussthere S-,D l. vided.: free ,communcationijbetween thez.111t13i0.1i of-.thev shoe -arrdithexterior fby vWay .of ,tl-1 5: forationsA `,I 3,11.the;-.slots.orschannels.: 5*;V `and-- tllQ-,i perforations-Slc Inli asl-roethus-:constructed the,` movement of f the foot c ine. walk-ing@ constantly; pumps-.animA andolut. through these. passagewayes.'` thusiprovidingi. adenylate, breathing in. spite; of'

Zacate, ,forexample-.ad-jacent to thesearn.` S (Figi 1)m which unites-the.: quarter and-vamp` Like,, wise, instead-fot asinglegrou-p of perforations, and#v channels, at thearch of the vfoot, separate groups maybe arranged-.at opposite-sides-.of the forepart of the shoe, the channelsthen leading toV the perforations S which-are located at the-.rightl and 'lett partsv ofthe forepart of the shoe.

It-bL-as been found-.that perforations-located las:y above described and in number approX-i-mati-ng-s` those-herein illustrated-provide ample ventilation -foraverage weather conditions.- Obviously-- a greater-:or-lesser number v-of perforations may be provided when the shoeis tol-be-worn underunusual conditions. For exampleg a--greater nur-n-v ber ci lining. -perfcrations and channels may be.- provioled-,f if desired;- as.=illustrated -in--Fig- 5,- where-- ther-rowsof -2 perforaticns I3a 'extend-1 almost allf of :the way -acrossthe-width of --the -vamplining daf-and-:those at the-.sidesextend rearward-ly -al-v most to those-parts of lthe -vamp which -joi-n- -the quarter. In `thelarrangementshown-in- Fig. 5, thel spacer comprises the-.1. parallel bars- I Se `-but these bars are `united-onlyat f' their forward Aends --to the transversely extending connecter member ISI);-

Attheir--rear ends-they-are free from each-other, and. in this arrangement-it is-:contemplatedethat each of1the.-bars will-be individually cemented-- thronghcut-,its-len-gth to the-vamp lining-3e:- Itis-.-'further coriterr1platedthat the bars I6@ may.- be kentirely-independentlof each; other,` if desired-,5- insteadsof, beingjoineduby the transverse member-JEP; b utthe `employment ot'individual-bars.- inv.. Ves. considerable Garcin-applyingy them-.td thesvampgglining; and; anV arrangement such as.

vamp lining- I0maybe..ofsa material generally 60g-tha. ShQiILin Figsflcor Sinisipreferred-.wherein similanto thatusedfor `the vamp,.though..usual1y thinner, although it need not have the same surface finish, or, alternatively, and preferably, as above noted, of usual uncoated lining cloth or thin leather. material comprises an inner ply Illa of textile fabric and an outer coating ply Ib of impervious material, and, as above suggested, the vamp 3 may be of a similar structure. On the other hand, as noted above, the lining may consist of 70 forming a channel or passageway leading from 75 As illustrated in Fig. '7, the lining 65 alt Offthel several :bars .areconnectedatftheirfopposite ends to form a grid unit which may be applied in a single operation to the vamp lining.

In Fig. 11 a modication is illustrated wherein the spacer grid I4 is secured to the inside surface of the vamp 3 instead of to the vamp lining. This spacer grid I4 is preferably like that previously described and shown in Fig. 9, and may be attached to the inner side of the vamp in any of the ways above suggested but conveniently is secured to the vamp at its forward edge by the same seam 'I which unites the tip to the vamp proper. If desired, the rear or remaining portion of the grid may be secured to the vamp by adhesive I1 in the same way as illustrated in Fig. 8`. This procedure may be employed whenever it is found more convenient to attach the spacer grid to the vamp than to the vamp lining.

In Figs. 12 and 13 a slight further modification is suggested wherein the openings I2 in the vamp lining |011 are arranged in staggered relation rather than in uninterrupted rows extending from front to rear. With this arrangement extreme accuracy in registration of the channels in the spacer grid with the rows of openings in the vamp lining is not necessary since under all ordinary circumstances the channels in the spacer grid will register with some, at least, of the openings I2.

As hereinbefore described, the spacer grid may be made from sheet material and secured, as a unit, to the vamp lining or vamp by stitching and/or adhesive. However, it is contemplated that the channels I may be provided in other ways, for example, by depositing upon the vamp lining or vamp lines of material in plastic condition, for example, a thermoplastic which, in setting, forms ribs of the requisite thickness and longitudinal flexibility which inherently adhere to the vamp lining or vamp but which do not substantially compress or decrease in vertical thickness during the life of the shoe.

If the invention is to be embodied in a tipless shoe, for example, a shoe of the Blucher type such as illustrated in Fig. 14, the vamp 3111 (Fig.

15), which is usually provided with an integral tongue T, is perforated to provide a transversely extending row of Ventilating openings V closely adjacent to the junction of the tongue with the vamp proper. Preferably this row of ventilating openings is interrupted at the central part of the vamp, since the central part of the vamp, at the base of the tongue, is visible when the shoe is worn. A spacer grid |4111 (Fig. 16), which may be similar to the grid previously described, is adhesively secured to the inside of the vamp so that its slots |5111 register at their rear ends with the Ventilating openings V. Preferably, a seam S extends across the upper or rear end of the spacer grid so as securely to unite it to the vamp. The vamp lining |0111 (Fig. 17) is of the usual type and material except that it is provided with perforations |3111 such as the perforations I3 previously described.

When the parts are assembled, each channel I5m of the spacer grid communicates with one or more of the perforations |3111, and since the channels also communicate with the ventilating openings V there are thus provided passages through which air may flow inwardly or outwardly, providing ventilation for the foot. In the completed shoe the forward ends E of the wing portions of the quarter 2111 of the shoe overlap and conceal the Ventilating openings V, although the overlapping wings do not nt down snugly against the outer surface of the vamp 8 sufficiently close to close the Ventilating openings.

It will be evident that the practice of the present invention is wholly independent of the type of shoe selected and regardless of the system of lasting or method of attaching the outersole which may be employed.

While certain desirable embodiments of the invention have herein been illustrated and described by way of example, it is to be understood that the invention is broadly inclusive of any and all modifications falling within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A shoe comprising a Vamp, a vamp lining and a tip whose rear marginal portion overlies the vamp, the shoe having registering openings in the overlapping portions of the tip and vamp, a grid of flexible material interposed between the vamp and vamp lining at the forepart portion of the shoe, the grid having slots registering with the aforesaid openings, and the vamp lining having apertures rearwardly of said tip, which communicate with the slots in the grid.

2. A shoe according to claim 1, having a toe box whose rear edge abuts the forward edge of the vamp and which extends forwardly from said edge to form a support for the tip.

3. A shoe according to claim 1, wherein the openings through the overlapping portions of the tip and vamp are disposed in a row extending transversely of the shoe, and the slots in the grid are so arranged that the forward end of each slot registers with one of said openings respectively.

4. Ashoe according to claim 1 wherein the grid is substantially rectangular in contour, consisting of inelastic sheet material, the margin of the grid being uninterrupted throughout its entire periphery, the slots in the grid extending 1ongitudinally of the grid and through its entire thickness and being of uniform width from end to end.

5. A shoe according to claim 1 wherein a ply of textile fabric, inside of the vamp, is of so open a weave as to provide apertures between its constituent threads through which air may pass.

FREDERIC H. TABER. HAROLD S. SWAIN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 682,182 Ellings Sept. 10, 1901 1,623,092 Carr Apr. 5, 1927 1,772,340 Daniels Aug. 5, 1930 1,946,986 Reed et a1 Feb. 13, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 18,566 Great Britain Jan. 17, 1907 145,968 Germany Nov. 12, 1903 

